Mechanical reel-type gaming machines include spinnable reels having graphical symbols spaced apart along the periphery of each reel. When the reels are at rest a portion of the periphery of each reel is visible through a viewing window, and one or more pay lines may be defined through the visible symbols. The symbols that line up along a given pay line for a given play in the game indicate the result for that play. Traditional reel-type gaming machines included complicated mechanical reel spinning arrangements for causing the reels to spin and ultimately come to a stop for a given play in the game. Modern reel-type gaming machines employ electrical motors to spin and stop the reels.
As gaming machines have evolved, so have the cabinets used to house the various gaming machine components. In many cases it is desirable for the gaming machine cabinet to be slim and take up a minimum of casino floor space. Yet the cabinets must securely house the various gaming machine components, including electronic components such as various controllers and processing devices, and mechanical or electro mechanical components such as the spinnable reels. Also, the various gaming machine components must be housed in a manner to allow proper cooling during operation, particularly for the powerful processing devices commonly used in modern gaming machines.
Prior electro mechanical reel-type gaming machines have employed a shelf mounted within the gaming machine cabinet on which the various reels and related components have been mounted. Some modern electro mechanical gaming machines use reel assemblies that combine the reel, reel driving motor, and other components on a suitable fixture that may be installed in the gaming machine cabinet as a unit. Various mounting arrangements have been developed for mounting these reel assemblies in the gaming machine cabinet. Despite improvements in reel assemblies and reel assembly mounting arrangements, there remains a need in the art for a reel assembly that requires minimum cabinet space, and facilitates good circulation within the cabinet to allow improved heat dissipation. There also remains a need in the art for a reel assembly that can be installed or replaced rapidly without affecting other gaming machine components.